Ram V is undoubtedly one of the best writers in comics today, but he’s not exactly a straightforward storyteller, and his sprawling run on Detective Comics, his “Gotham Nocturne” suite, has left more than a few befuddled readers in its wake. The patient will find plenty to love, though. It’s a story that speaks to those very familiar with Batman lore, especially, as this volume makes clear, the “Knightfall” template of the Dark Knight finding himself up against a foe capable of defeating him, which writers from Morrison to Snyder to King have tackled in the past dozen years or so, all of them, really, chasing the fallible, mythic Batman of Frank Miller…Ram’s idea hinges on the Batman of the Christopher Nolan films, the idea of Ra’s al Ghul being the one really big enough to challenge him, with a new framework expanding on the idea…Here we see Batman without Batman, which is usually a story of other characters trying desperately to fill the void, the cowl, but Ram instead chooses to feature both allies and foes working in concert, perhaps the single story capable of explaining this current era where any of his supporting characters can hold court in their own ongoing series…The look is very reminiscent of classic Jim Aparo, the artist who’s best known for the death of Jason Todd and Bane breaking Batman’s back, too often taken for granted in later years. The feel is like the Elseworlds tales of years past. In short, while this story has been told before…never, really, allowed to happen in an ongoing title, free from being an “event,” merely a creative statement. And that is why Ram V has a considered space in the DC landscape. At some point it’ll be easier to see.